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Travel and surfing journalist Michael Scott Moore was kidnapped by Somali pirates on Saturday. His book "Sweetness and Blood" was named a book of the year by the Economist in 2010. Screenshot via Amazon.com

Manhattan Beach surfing and travel journalist Michael Scott Moore was taken hostage in Somalia on Saturday while researching a book about Somali pirates.

The writer, a dual citizen of the U.S. and Germany, was kidnapped days before two aid worker hostages, including 32-year-old American Jessica Buchanan, were rescued in a midnight raid by Navy SEAL Team 6, the L.A. Times details.

The U.S. State Department is concerned, and issued a statement saying as much: "We are aware of news reports that a U.S. citizen has been kidnapped in northern Somalia and we are concerned about the individual's safety and well-being."

Moore, a 1987 graduate of Mira Costa High School who had recently been living in Berlin, previously traveled to Africa to research a seriers of articles on the same subject, KTLA reported.

The pirates believe Moore to be a spy, according to reports from Somalia, and he was abducted by 15 men in two SUVs while en route to an airport. He's believed to be in Ceel Huur, a village on the Indian Ocean.

The Somali pirates are demanding ransom and will reportedly not negotiate until the undisclosed amount of money has been paid.

A 2006-2007 Fulbright fellow for journalism in Germany, Moore serves as editor-at-large for Berlin's Spiegel Online and has written the Los Angeles Times, Atlantic Monthly, and Slate. "Sweetness and Blood," Moore's book on surfing history, was named as a book of the year in 2010 by the Economist.